Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
The Montreal Alouettes can secure another first on Saturday night.
Montreal (11-2-1) visits the Toronto Argonauts (7-7) with a chance to take first in the East Division and gain home field advantage in the conference final on November 9. Alouettes win or Ottawa Redblacks lose in Regina would do the trick for the defending Gray Cup champions.
Montreal became the first CFL team to earn a postseason berth and a playoff contest.
For the third week in a row, Ottawa (8-5-1) can clinch a playoff berth with a win. The Redblacks visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders (6-7-1) on Saturday afternoon.
Ottawa has not been to the playoffs since losing to Calgary in the ’18 Gray Cup. The Redblacks would also qualify for the postseason with losses to Hamilton and Edmonton, which would eliminate the possibility of Ottawa being affected by a Western Division crossover.
Edmonton and Hamilton are both on the road Friday night. The Elks (5-9) play the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (8-6) while the Ticats (5-9) face the BC Lions (7-7).
Winnipeg would also punch its playoff ticket with a win.
Montreal is coming off last week’s 24-12 win over Ottawa. Not only did the Alouettes remain undefeated on the road (6-0-1), they were the first team to defeat the Redblacks at TD Place this season.
Montreal faces a similar situation this week as Toronto is 5-2 this season at BMO Field. But while the Alouettes are 5-1 within the Eastern Division, the Argos are only 1-5.
However, that lone win in Toronto was a 37-18 decision in Montreal on July 11. The Alouettes won the series opener 30-20 at BMO Field on June 28.
Montreal will get its first look of the season in Toronto starter Chad Kelly. He did not play in either of the previous two games while serving a CFL-mandated suspension for violating its gender-based violence policy.
Kelly was reinstated, with conditions, in August.
Toronto is 2-3 under Kelly, the CFL’s outstanding player last season. He has completed 119-of-179 passes (66.5 percent) for 1,630 yards with six touchdowns and seven interceptions while rushing 26 times for 131 yards (five-yard average) and four TDs.
Montreal’s Cody Fajardo has completed 225 of 306 passes (a league-best 73.5 percent) for 2,642 yards with 13 TDs and six interceptions. The Alouettes are 7-2-1 with Fajardo starting.
Toronto is coming off a 33-31 home loss to Hamilton, which gave the Ticats their first regular season series sweep of the Argos since 2019. Kelly threw for 255 yards with a TD and an interception while DaVaris Daniels had four catch for 118 yards.
Montreal is allowing a CFL-low 19.6 offensive points per game. Linebacker Tyrice Beverette has a league-high 114 defensive plays (including a league-best 92 total tackles) with teammate Darnell Sankey second overall with 100 (including 89 defensive tackles which leads the league).
An interesting matchup will be Toronto’s second-ranked ground game (118.4 yards per game) against Montreal’s No. 8 run defense (112.1 yards). The Argos are averaging 5.4 yards per rush (second best in CFL), which is also what the Alouettes are allowing (tied for seventh most).
But Montreal has the league’s second-ranked pass defense (254.8 yards per game). The Alouettes have allowed just seven completions of 30-plus yards and 14 touchdown passes, both CFL lows.
And Montreal’s second-down conversion percentage of 45.6 is second only to Winnipeg (42.4).
Choice: Montreal.
Edmonton Elks vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (Friday night)
In Winnipeg, the Bombers have won six straight and sit atop the Western Division. A big part of their success has been Brady Oliveira (CFL-leading 1,021 rushing yards, 5.8-yard average). Last week, the defense forced six turnovers in the club’s 27-14 road win over Edmonton. Veteran McLeod Bethel-Thompson will likely start for the Elks, who had Justin Rankin’s 157-yard rushing performance last week, his second 100-yard game of the season.
Choice: Winnipeg.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats vs BC Lions (Friday night)
In Vancouver, the Ticats are chasing a fourth straight win. Veteran Bo Levi Mitchell leads the CFL in passing (4,044 yards) and TDs (24). Marc Liegghio hit all six of the field goals he attempted last week against Toronto, including the 48-yard winner on the final play of the game. Nathan Rourke remains the starter for BC, which is coming off a bye week and hosts an East Division rival – usually two big advantages. Then again, the Lions’ last home game on September 13 was a 33-17 loss to Toronto.
Choice: CC
Ottawa Redblacks vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders (Saturday afternoon)
In Regina, Saskatchewan ended its seven-game winless streak (0-6-1) with last week’s 37-29 road win against Calgary. Former Redblack Ryquell Armstead ran for 207 yards on 25 carries in his Riders debut. Ottawa counters with the league’s third-ranked run defense (91.1 yards per game) but starter Dru Brown (ankle) was injured last week against Montreal. If he can’t play, veteran Jeremiah Masoli is expected to get the start.
Choice: Saskatchewan.
Last week: 3-1.
CP overall record: 36-27.
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on September 25, 2024.
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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